Present embodiments relate generally to the field of drilling and processing of wells, and, more particularly, to tubular compensators.
In conventional oil and gas operations, a drilling rig is used to drill a wellbore to a desired depth using a drill string, which includes drillpipe, drill collars and a bottom hole drilling assembly. During drilling, the drill string may be turned by a rotary table and kelly assembly or by a top drive. Once the wellbore reaches total depth, the drill string may be removed from the well and the completion phase may be initiated. The completion phase includes assembling downhole tubulars and equipment used to enable production from an oil or gas well.
During completion of the well, the drilling rig may be used to insert joints or stands (e.g., multiple coupled joints) of tubular into the wellbore that will be used for production. Similarly, the drilling rig may be used to remove tubular from the wellbore. As an example, during insertion of tubular into the wellbore by a traditional operation, each tubular element (e.g., each joint or stand) is coupled to an attachment feature that is in turn lifted by a traveling block of the drilling rig such that the tubular element is positioned over the wellbore. An initial tubular element may be positioned in the wellbore and held in place by gripping devices near the rig floor, such as slips. Subsequent tubular elements may then be coupled to the existing tubular elements in the wellbore to continue formation of the completion string. Once attached, the tubular element and remaining completion string may be held in place by an elevator and released from the gripping devices (e.g., slips) such that the completion string can be lowered into the wellbore. Once the completion string is in place, the gripping devices can be reengaged to hold the completion string such that the elevator can be released and the process of attaching tubular elements can be started again.
Assembly of tubular in a completion string can result in damage to tubular elements. Indeed, due to the weight of tubular elements, damage can occur when engaging mating ends of tubular elements already disposed within the wellbore and those being added to the completion string. Traditionally, tubular compensators have been utilized to offset the weight of tubular elements being added and thus reduce the occurrence of such damage. However, it is now recognized that some existing tubular compensators can be cumbersome, consume excessive vertical space, and function inefficiently. Accordingly, it is now recognized that there exists a need for an improved tubular compensator.